Back to Sufferlandia

I was in Sydney for a few days for meetings. Was nice to be reacquainted with my old Cervelo P3 which fits like an old shoe. Unfortunately, time was at a premium so I decided to just ride my bike on the trainer in the hotel room. To keep my enthusiasm up, I decided to return to Sufferlandia—in particular, a “Very Dark Place” in Sufferlandia…

I’ve blogged before about these excellent “Sufferfest” training DVDs. Just a few weeks ago they released “A Very Dark Place” and at 2 GB I decided to wait until Sydney to download (we have a 10 GB monthly data cap in N.Z.). The advertising for it was as subdued as all the Sufferfest DVDs are:

You know that ride you’ve done where you thought you went harder, deeper and to a darker place than you’d ever gone before? Well, this takes you further, deeper and darker than that with officially licensed footage from races like Paris-Roubaix and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and featuring pro cyclists like Phillipe Gilbert, Fabian Cancellara, Thor Hushovd and Bradley Wiggins. Similar to our Downward Spiral and Revolver videos, A Very Dark Place is about maximum effort for shorter durations: in this case, 4:00 intervals.

It was created to work you very, very hard. You need to be both physically and mentally ready for this one. Designed to help you improve your top speed over short distances – covering, or making, attacks, getting over those steep short hills and powering down the other side or taking a big pull at the front of the breakaway.

Of course, we’re here not just to make you suffer, but to entertain you – so we designed each 4:00 interval with a unique, eh, personality: from steady intensity to aggressive climbing to relentless attacks on the cobbles or on the bergs. You will not get bored – guaranteed.

No false advertising. I (a) did not get bored and (b) got totally trashed. Unfortunately the very long days and short nights sapped my performance (OK – let’s just say that I’m nowhere near race fitness) but I enjoyed—in a masochistic way—my visit to Sufferlandia again.